the WTA reaffirms its “concern” despite the release of the silence of the player

The WTA is not reassured. The body which manages the women’s tennis circuit, reaffirmed Monday, December 20 its “worry” regarding the fate of Peng Shuai, who gave his first official interview on Sunday in the Singaporean newspaper Lianhe Zaobao, a daily in Chinese language but inaccessible in China, on the sidelines of a sporting event in Shanghai.

The player denied any sexual assault. “First, I want to stress a very important point: I never said or wrote that someone had sexually assaulted me”, she assured. There have been “a lot of misunderstandings” on a case “private”, added the champion. She also assured that she was free. A Chinese reporter for the nationalist daily Global Times previously posted a new video of the player on Twitter. The seven-second footage shows the player chatting with former star basketball player Yao Ming.

A friend sent me this video showing Chinese tennis star player Peng Shuai talked with Yao Ming, one of the most beloved players in @NBA history, this morning at an event “FIS Cross-Country Skiing China City Tour ‘in Shanghai. pic.twitter.com/Ebduv5rean

– Qingqing_Chen (@qingqingparis) December 19, 2021

These recent news “do not allay the WTA’s concerns about its well-being and its ability to communicate without censorship or coercion”, the organization said in a statement. In early December, the WTA had canceled all its tournaments in China and demanded a transparent investigation into the accusations of the player who had mentioned in early November a sexual intercourse. “strength” with Zhang Gaoli, married and 40 years his senior, who became, from 2013 to 2018, one of the seven most powerful politicians in China.

The message was promptly erased by Chinese censorship and the former world number 1 in doubles did not appear in public for several weeks, causing concern in the sports world, the UN and several countries. including the United States and France.